Nick Cannon 'encourages trying' within his kids

Nick Cannon wants to "encourage trying and effort" within his two children.

The 36-year-old rapper is father to five-year-old twins Moroccan and Monroe - whom he shares with his ex wife Mariah Carey - and has said he won't let his status as a celebrity influence their career paths, as he wants to make sure they still put in the "hard work" required to accomplish their dreams.

He said: "If they want to be entertainers, God bless 'em. It's gonna be easy for them to be entertainers. I think as a parent, you want to encourage trying and effort, and putting hard work to the test to show something you can actually accomplish.

"So if it is entertainment, I'm gonna put them through it. I'm gonna make sure, one, school gotta be right. If you want to be a singer, sing in the choir at school. If you want to be an actor, act in a school play first. Go through that process that every kid has to go through."

But the star admits he doesn't want his children to follow in the footsteps of their parents.

He added: "I don't want my kids to be entertainers. But they have it. They're little hams -- they see a microphone, they run for it."

Nick has his work cut out for him though, as the young twins already believe they are "famous" just like their mother and father.